The 2026 edition consists of three chapters: Chapter 1 reviews the status of the health-related indicators of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), covering age- and cause-specific mortality, infectious diseases, risk factors for health, and universal health coverage (UHC) and health systems. Chapter 2 presents an in-depth analysis of global and regional estimates of excess mortality associated with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, life expectancy and healthy life expectancy (HALE). Chapter 3 assesses the availability and quality of country cause-of-death registration as reported to the WHO mortality database. This chapter also presents selected country experiences demonstrating how strengthening civil registration and vital statistics (CRVS) systems improves the quality, completeness and use of mortality data.